A core teaching · reflective in mood · a little context helps
“Passing pleasure loses its power when its ending is seen.”
The pleasures born from contact with the senses are only sources of suffering. They have a beginning and an end, O Arjuna, and the wise do not delight in them.
The verse in reading order — each Sanskrit word with its meaning beneath. Hover a word to focus on it.
Read literallythese · indeed · born from contact · pleasures · sources of suffering · only · having beginning and end · O son of Kunti · not · in them · delights · the wise person
Pleasures that come from the senses do not last and often lead to suffering. A clear-minded person does not get absorbed in them.
Krishna speaks this verse, on the battlefield of Kurukshetra, in the chapter titled "Karma Sanyasa Yoga" (The Yoga of Renunciation).
Verse 22 sits in Chapter 5 of the Bhagavad Gita — Karma Sanyasa Yoga, "The Yoga of Renunciation". The chapter has 29 verses in total.
You open your phone for one quick check and lose twenty minutes, then feel worse. The pull was brief; the aftertaste was not. Clear seeing breaks that loop.
Did you like this verse?
It shifts attention from chasing stimulation to seeing its cost before you reach for it.
What this verse means
Pleasures that come from the senses do not last and often lead to suffering. A clear-minded person does not get absorbed in them.
Context & commentary
On the battlefield of Kurukshetra, Arjuna is frozen before the war. Krishna continues teaching him how to see clearly: sense-based pleasures are temporary, and their sweetness hides the suffering they bring. A steady mind stops chasing them.
Why this verse still matters
You open your phone for one quick check and lose twenty minutes, then feel worse. The pull was brief; the aftertaste was not. Clear seeing breaks that loop.
“You can enjoy life without being pulled around by every passing pleasure.”
Explore related themes: vairagya (51 verses), indriya (19 verses)